Lifting with Caroline Girvan 2024: What's not to love?!

[BigButtons]

New thread!

Hi everyone I’m a complete CG newbie but I’ve read every single post to this topic!

I have decided to start strength training - it was an article last week or the week before in the Times by a woman who does 30 minutes every day and there was a quote the sentiment of which stuck with me - “I’m not training for a beach body, I’m training for my old lady body”. I’m 57 and that speaks to me. I’ve never been thin but for the past 5 years I’ve been trying to keep within a healthy BMI mainly through diet. I’ve slacked off a little over the last year and have gone back on Weight Watchers and am adding strength training to my daily (almost religious) closing of my “ring” on my phone, which is about 7-10k steps per day but has helped me tremendously with some lower back issues.

I had read on MN that CG was a great trainer and I got the app and have started at Ultimate Beginners. So far I’ve done 5 workouts and am feeling great. I’m keeping the weight low as I am determined not to rush myself building the weights up and risk injuring myself. I’ve got all the time in the world for this.

I just discovered the Screen Mirroring app on my Samsung smart TV and being able to play the workouts from my phone and view them in the TV is really life changing.

Looking forward to following you all and being inspired by all your amazing achievements!

PS. I love how kind and supportive you all are to each other! 🥰

Welcome @Mommybunny ! Well done on getting started! I am 56 and I train for my old age. Sure I like the physical benefits now and am liking the aesthetics too.
yesterday after an epic heat upper body session( haven’t done heat for years)- I spent an hour in the garden with a lump hammer and chisel knocking out old concrete. Not sure I would have had the stamina or strength were it not for Caroline 🙂

Whereas @BigButtons I did squat and press epic 2 workout on Monday and have spent the remaining days hobbling about,and lowering myself onto the toilet with gritted teeth!! Haha.

I am definitely doing this for Older Me. And also current me because it feels so good, physically and mentally, to be strong and fit. The mental health effects alone would be worth it. The aesthetic side effects are fun, I won't lie, but they come in third after the other benefits.

Also doing for older me, my mums poor mobility in her 50’s scared the crap out of me!

Hello Caroline fans. Can I pick your brains ?

I haven't had the subscription but I did do some of Caroline's free workouts. However I have had surgery which now prevents me doing squats, lunges, rdl, ab crunches. Are there any Caroline workouts left that would still suit me or is it time for a new regime ?

Those are pretty fundamental movements for lifting and for most workout programmes tbh. On the other hand you'd be able to do her upper body sessions. Is it a temporary change for you, or permanent? Either way I think you probably need some tailored PT support if you want to develop a workout routine which works for you now. It would be very difficult to advise without knowing exactly what your restrictions/challenges are.

Disclaimer, not a PT or physician of any kind, this is an entirely amateur opinion.

I have had those days! I remember one in cgx iron where I couldn’t sit down without support for days on end!

Welcome to the threat @Mommybunny ! I'm nearly 59 and started lifting with Caroline 18 months ago. Previously I was a cardio queen, mainly running, but I've had a complete body recomp following Caroline's programs and am a lot stronger than before.
@TheDogsMother it sounds like you should be OK with upper body exercises? What about hip thrusts and bridges (for the glutes - could you manage those?
This week's full body routines on the App look interesting, but I'm sticking with Unleash, it's the only App program I haven't done yet. I'm guessing there will be a new program out in September.

Oh, I meant to say I had a little win today, chest presses are my nemesis, I've never managed to get above 10kg in each hand, but today managed 3 sets of 12 reps with 12,5kg 😀Of course Caroline was using 17,5kg 😱- she is really strong. I read yesteday that woment often match men in terms of lower body strength but genetically they are much weaker in the upper body.

I am also struggling to get past 10s on chest press Sam, despite being generally able to match Caro on legs albeit sometimes I regret it. The strength of CG's upper body frankly boggles me, but I guess she's built it over years. I count it a good day when I can overhead-press a 10 at all.

Thank you @samthebordercollie. Upper body is no problem also bridges and bridges with a leg extension type move. Leg exercises but not deep squats and exercise laying down or from all fours. I haven't explored the subscription so I was just wondering if there would be enough that I could do. I love CG.

I’m stuck on 5’s or 6’s each arm as they really annoy my traps. I need to do some work on my traps as that’s where I suffer the most my actual arms can handle more weight. Apart from triceps. Those bloody muscles just want to lift a pencil 😂

It took me a looonnnggg time to be able to up weights for arms. When I started with cg I’m 2021 I could just about manage 3kg for triceps and 4 for biceps. I was stuck at those for bloody ages. I can curl6.5/7 for biceps depending on the set length and any injuries and the same for triceps. Triceps are tiny muscles!

I can curl and chest press about 7kg but the next day my traps are very tight so I am trying to build up my traps to be stronger and less tight so resting them a fair bit. They just don’t like me. Tricep diamond press I can do 5kg but by the end of a triple 1m 30 set I am crying 😂

I broke my Left elbow and had it pinned a few years ago,It really annoys me because it does start to bother me when doing triceps(mainly Skull Crushers)I could lift heavier but my left arm lets me down...Would it make sense to use a lower weight it that hand(and heavier in the right) when I feel it starting to bother me???

@ellebelli I think you'd just end up with uneven muscle development that way. If you can't mod the exercise to work for your injury, I think you'd be better off using lighter but even weights and just using different moves on the tricep.

A topical question: how much do you work out on holiday? I'm off soon and it's a Neilson active holiday, so I will be doing lots of swimming/bike rides/yoga/cardio and I will also have access to a gym, so wondering whether I should stick in a few weights sessions to maintain muscle mass.

@DreadPirateRobots I'm heading off soon to the same resort in Spain I went to last year. Last year I went for 10 days and I worked out 4 of those days in the hotel gym using CG workouts. It was actually great doing the workouts at a proper gym where I could check my form in the mirrors and have access to every size of weight. I'll probably do the same this year as I'm going for 11 days.
The rest of my holiday is completely chilled though. I do very little so not sure I'd go to the gym as much if my holiday was as active as yours!

I'm just not a laze-about person 😁i find I have plenty of time for reading a book on a sun lounger even with some bike rides and long sea swims built in. Neilson run fitness classes as well which I enjoy.

Hi everyone,

As enthusiastic as I still am about my workouts, I find myself a little annoyed that the description of the whole program on the app says the only equipment needed is dumbbells, but then when you get into each workout it might add something like a glute band, and for one workout it didn’t even mention I’d need a yoga block but the raised heel squats are impossible without one. Am I the only one who’s noticed this? Or does everyone else just have this equipment already and it would have been safe for CG to assume that?

So anyway, onto Amazon I go. Any recommendations for specific glute bands/yoga blocks very much appreciated. I will also throw in a better mat so that’s helpful too. Is there any other equipment I might need? I know I will need heavier dumbbells but am going to ease into that.

@Mommybunny I don't use the app, but I'm surprised - her YT workouts always say in the description what stuff is required. Glute band is pretty much it - you can use a thick book instead of a yoga block if you don't have the latter. (I used to use a complete edition of Shakespeare.) You can also do without those things altogether if you don't have them and just do regular squats, or a heavier weight instead of the glute band.

I like Decathlon for good and well-priced workout equipment.

@Mommybunny I always find that the written description of each workout details exactly what is needed for each workout. I don't know which program you are doing now but the program guide for each program in the knowlege section of the app details any new equipment Caroline will be using, with stockists of the equiptment.
I have significantly added to my dumbell collection, and also bought a barbell (much easier for hip thrusts and bridges[, ramps for elevated squats and rdls, wrist straps to enable lifting heavy dumbells, a cheap bench from Decathlon and a box for step ups.
The band I bought was the original Tecknifit one used by Caroline, it's really good, I got it on Amazon.
Oh, I forgot the stability ball 😂

@Mommybunny I forgot the images from the App!

Thanks @DreadPirateRobots and @samthebordercollie . Workout 4 definitely didn’t mention a yoga block but when I started it there she was with it doing heel elevated squats. I used a Quality Street tin in a pinch. I now know to look at each day’s equipment in advance but even looking yesterday at today’s schedule there was no way I could have sourced a glute band in time to do today’s workout. So as I’m ordering some equipment I was just wondering if there was anything else I might need. It’s also somewhat annoying if she doesn’t specify a certain bit of kit in the description as I keep it all in another room to where I work out.

Anyway, thanks for the suggestions. It sounds like that Workout 4 yoga block miss may have been a one-off.